BMW to rival the Tesla Model 3 with an all-electric 3 Series

Although the BMW i3 is getting a battery upgrade for the 2017 model year, its updated 114-mile driving range is no match for the upcoming 200-mile range Tesla Model 3. Don’t worry, because BMW is reportedly working on an all-electric version of the popular 3 Series that will rival the Model 3 and other upcoming rivals from Audi and Mercedes-Benz.

The next-generation of the popular 3 Series is expected to debut within the next 18 months and when it does, BMW will not only introduce a plug-in hybrid version, but a new fully-electric 3 Series. BMW is going to use many of the technology that it first introduced with the i3 and i8 models, including the use of lightweight carbon fiber. The new 3 Series will also switch to a new platform called Cluster Architecture, or CLAR for short.

The all-electric 3 Series will likely wear an eDrive badge and could be powered by a 90-kWh battery pack. While the new 3 Series is expected for the 2018 model year, we may have to wait until closer to 2020 to get the all-electric 3 Series. If it doesn’t arrive until 2020, that means that the electric 3 Series will trail the arrival of the Tesla Model 3 by three years, if Tesla can start production in 2017.